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AC Milan took another step toward the Serie A title with a 1-0 victory over ten-man Bologna, courtesy of a strike from Mathieu Flamini, but have not clinched the championship quite yet, as they maintain an eight-point lead at the top of the table with three matches remaining.

A win was not enough for the table-toppers to claim the Scudetto in Round 35 after Inter's late win against Cesena on Saturday evening, but Massimiliano Allegri still had to make do without the suspended Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Mark van Bommel, as well as injured duo Alexandre Pato and Gennaro Gattuso. Meanwhile, Alberto Malesani's Bologna were looking to end a poor run of form after four consecutive losses.

It didn't take long for the home side to go in front as midfielder Flamini, showing a rare piece of individual flair, burst past the flat-footed Miguel Britos and had his first shot parried by goalkeeper Emiliano Viviano before sliding in the rebound to open the scoring in the 8th minute.

Cassano should have doubled their tally 10 minutes later, but the ex-Sampdoria star failed to convert after receiving the ball deep in the area, though he looked to be in an offside position.

The red and black outfit looked comfortable as they controlled the midfield, and Alessandro Nesta was able to quell the threat of Marco Di Vaio on the rare occasions he received the ball. However, the visitors remained within touching distance as Boateng missed an open header from six yards just past the half-hour mark and Flamini failed to nab his second goal on the stroke of half-time after being set up by Robinho on the counter.

The second-half began with Bologna pressing for an equaliser, as Malesani made a double change in the early exchanges, with Francesco Della Rocca and Gaston Ramirez replacing the disappointing Matteo Rubin and invisible Riccardo Meggiorini.

Incredibly AC Milan once again were denied an easy goal. The visitors relinquished possession in midfield and Cassano sent Robinho on a breakaway, but the Brazilian sliced wide as Nicolo Cherubin raced back and attempted a challenge.

Bologna made their last throw of the dice with 20 minutes remaining, throwing on hot prospect Henry Gimenez in search of a goal, having yet to really test goalkeeper Christian Abbiati. It nearly paid dividends, as the substitute's header flashed wide from a corner, then Britos also missed from a similar situation moments later.

Andrea Pirlo made a cameo, replacing the impressive Kevin-Prince Boateng and there was controversy in the final few minutes as Della Rocca was sent off for a late tackle on Massimo Ambrosini.

That was the extent of the action however, with the hosts able to hold on to their narrow lead despite a rather lacklustre second-half, meaning a point in their next match against Roma will guarantee the title. Bologna, meanwhile, remain on 40 points and are not yet completely safe from relegation after their fifth consecutive loss.